Grading NFL draft trades: Cowboys-Dolphins trade mutually beneficial to both teams

Seth WalderApr 23, 2026, 09:58 PM ETCloseSeth Walder is an analytics writer at ESPN, specializing in quantitative analysis. He is also a regular on "ESPN Bet Live" and helps cover sports betting. Seth has been at ESPN since 2017. He previously worked at the New York Daily News covering the Jets and Giants. You can follow Seth on X via @SethWalder.The 2026 NFL draft is underway, and teams are spicing things up with trades. There was already a ton of action on that front entering Thursday, with seven of the 32 first-round spots switching hands in earlier deals. The movement continued in Round 1 once things got rolling. We're here to size up the biggest trades from all angles.A lot of people say that we'll find out who won draft-day trades in three or four years. Nonsense! NFL general managers don't have the benefit of hindsight when it comes to making the trades, so why should analysts have it when evaluating them? I'm grading these deals immediately, based on the information available -- just like the teams are doing.To evaluate these deals, I'll be relying heavily on our Approximate Value-based draft pick calculations, along with important factors such as positional value, salary cap implications and short- and long-term team outlook. Trades during the draft can be enormously consequential and set the direction for a franchise for years to come, so don't sleep on the importance of faring well here.This page will be updated with deals as they come in throughout the draft, but we're grading only the biggest ones.NFL draft coverage: NFL draft trade trackerCowboys, Dolphins flip picksCowboys get: Dolphins' first-round pick (No. 11) Dolphins get: Cowboys' first-round pick (No. 12), two Cowboys' fifth-round picks (Nos. 177 and 180)Cowboys grade: B Dolphins grade: BThe Cowboys saw Ohio State safety Caleb Downs falling down the draft board and decided to guarantee the ability to draft him.Dallas traded two compensatory fifth-round picks to move up one slot in a deal with the Dolphins. According to ESPN's draft pick valuations, the Dolphins still come out ahead with the extra picks, but it's a below-average overpay for a first-round non-QB. Plus, Dallas is acquiring a player who was expected to already be off the board. Entering Thursday night, Downs had only a 52% chance to be on the board at pick No. 8 and just a 12% chance to make it to No. 11, according to ESPN's Draft Day Predictor.That doesn't quite mean that I think that the Cowboys basically got the No. 8 pick for the price of trading up to No. 11 -- the fact that Downs was passed over for 10 picks should tell us something -- but it does mitigate the perceived loss in value. Plus, it could be argued that by making this trade, the Cowboys avoided having to select a player who was a tier below the players drafted to that point of the draft.Downs is a premier prospect for a defense that badly needs one. Dallas ranked last in EPA per play on defense last season, so this is a trade I'm good with.This was also a fine move for the Dolphins. They pick up a couple of Day 3 picks and ended up picking a player -- Alabama offensive tackle Kadyn Proctor -- that they arguably would have picked anyway.Chiefs trade with Browns, move up to No. 6Chiefs get: Browns' first-round pick (No. 6) Browns get: Chiefs' first-round pick (No. 9), third-round pick (No. 74) and fifth-round pick (No. 148)Chiefs grade: D+ Browns grade: A-The Chiefs had a rare opportunity to draft in the top 10 after their disappointing 2025 campaign, entering Thursday with the No. 9 pick. They decided to move up even higher.Kansas City dealt a third-round pick and a fifth-rounder to move up three spots, leaping from No. 9 to 6 in a deal with the Browns in order to select LSU cornerback Mansoor Delane. Delane immediately fills the Chiefs' drastic need at cornerback after Kansas City lost two starting corners to the Rams this offseason -- Trent McDuffie (trade) and Jaylen Watson (free agency).The Chiefs are betting on defensive coordinator Steve Spanguolo getting the most of whatever cornerbacks they have and developing that young talent. Now we know that plan includes Delane.play0:35What Mansoor Delane brings to the ChiefsWhat Mansoor Delane brings to the ChiefsBut was it a smart deal? I don't think so.The trade was even on the Jimmy Johnson chart, but that is an antiquated measure and is indicative of NFL teams' overconfidence in their ability to forecast the difference between one prospect from another. By ESPN's Approximate Value-based draft pick valuations -- which are based on how players at each draft slot actually perform -- the Chiefs executed a larger-than-average overpay for a first-round, non-QB trade up.Here's the kicker: There was a good chance that Delane would have fallen to No. 9. In fact, at the time of his selection, the Draft Day Predictor gave Delane a 90% chance to make it to the ninth pick. Even if that was a little high, there's still a good chance that the Chiefs surrendered third- and fifth-round picks for nothing!This is an easy win for the Browns. Trading down early in the NFL draft is one of the most obvious ways for teams to gain an advantage. Cleveland walks away with extra draft capital and still got Utah offensive tackle Spencer Fano -- a highly ranked player at a position of need -- with the No. 9 pick.